Explanations into institutional aggression: deprivation model

Psychology unit 3 aggression revision Explanations into institutional aggression- deprivation modelDescriptionAggression in prisons is caused by frustration at the loss of liberty (freedom),autonomy (independence), goods and services, heterosexual relationships andsecurity. Aggression may also be used to try and recover these things.Evaluation / Light- found that 25% of assaults had no relation to the aggressive behaviour. Therefore 75% of assaults were related to aggression. Therefore deprivation can account for some prison violence but there are other reasons for violence too. prison violence is not constant, but can erupt suddenly. If deprivation is constant then violence should be too. overcrowding doesn't always lead to more violence. This undermines the theory as overcrowding should cause more deprivation and so more aggression. / Richards found that the type of inmate program affected the amount of violence. This shows that situational variables affect aggression although deprivation itself isn't really studied. / Wilson set up 2 units in a prison for violent prisoners. These units had cells with windows and were less claustrophobic, more comfortable temperatures, and everyday prison sounds were blocked out by music from a radio. These changes eliminated assaults on prison staff and other inmates. This supports deprivation as it shows that when people were undeprived their violence dropped. Therefore deprivation increases violence.